Pine Bonsai – A Less Common Cousin

This handsome cork bark (see corrections below*) Japanese red pine, with its deeply grooved bark tells a story of age and beauty. The artist is Enrico Savini. If someone asked you to name two Japanese pines, you’d probably answer, Japanese black pine and Japanese white pine. This would make sense as most of the Japanese pine bonsai you see are Black or White. However, there is another important Japanese pine. It’s the Japanese red pine (Pinus densiflora). One reason you might not think of the Red pine is that it is less common than the Black or White pine and, … Continue reading Pine Bonsai – A Less Common Cousin

A Walk Through an Exceptional Bonsai Collection

Not only is this a great tree, but is has to qualifies as one of the most unique bonsai we’ve seen in a while… it’s just not often you see three (or is it four?) trunks fused into one. The tree belongs to a Mr Funayama. We borrowed this photo and the others shown here from Bill Valavanis. The photos shown here all from the Funayama Collection which was on display in a section of private collections at the recent 8th World Bonsai Convention. They were taken by the omnipresent Bill Valavanis. For more, I encourage you to visit Bill’s blog. … Continue reading A Walk Through an Exceptional Bonsai Collection

Don’t Be that Person!

This lovely tree will have to remain a mystery. The person who posted it doesn’t say anything about it, including where he or she found it, so we’ll return the favor. If you’ve been reading Bonsai Bark for a while, you may be aware of my occasional rants (gentle rants I hope) about failure to attribute bonsai to the artists and provide other pertinent information about the trees. And yes, as you suspect, we’re talking about social media. I think this is mostly just laziness. Somewhere in the course of a photo’s journey from one person’s timeline to the next, … Continue reading Don’t Be that Person!

Two Tricks with Bonsai Wire & 3 Day Wire Special

Japanese white pine from our 2017 Bonsai Calendar (sorry, sold out). This tree has no doubt been repeatedly wired over years of development. In addition to sharing a couple useful tricks with bonsai wire, this post is to let you know that we have just begun a 3 day Bonsai Wire Sale. 20% off all of our wire (Bonsai Aesthetics wire, Yoshiaki wire, U.S. manufactured Copper wire). When you combine it with our extra 10% off orders 100.00 or more and Free Shipping on Continental U.S. orders 49.00 or more (but only if you select Free Shipping when you check … Continue reading Two Tricks with Bonsai Wire & 3 Day Wire Special

Suthin’s Small, Strong & Sweet Japanese Pines

This sweet luminous little Japanese white pine belongs to Suthin. A total winner, right down to the perfectly pitched pot and the vivid yellow-green moss. Even given the fresh scar where a branch was just removed, it’s still simply superb (must be alliteration day today). Another reminder of Suthin’s bonsai vision and skills. I don’t usually pour it on quite so thick, but there’s something about Suthin* and his prolific bonsai brilliance, that brings out my adolescent star struck nature. And I’m not the only one. Go to any show where Suthin is vending and watch the bonsai devotees gather … Continue reading Suthin’s Small, Strong & Sweet Japanese Pines

Bonsai, Culture & a Meeting Place for Friends & Bonsai Lovers (What happens in Belgium…)

This highly unusual and remarkably powerful tree is from the cover of the 10th Noelanders Trophy book. I couldn’t find any information on the variety (looks like a Japanese white pine), the artist or the photographer. The 18th Noelanders Trophy is coming soon. February 4-5. It’s a long standing favorite in Europe. But not just Europe; bonsai artists and enthusiasts from around the world have long considered it a favorite destination for bonsai, culture and a meeting place for old friends and bonsai lovers (what happens in Belgium…). Continued below… It’s a New Year… Time to upgrade your Tools 25% … Continue reading Bonsai, Culture & a Meeting Place for Friends & Bonsai Lovers (What happens in Belgium…)

Nasty Alligators & Old New Year’s Bonsai

Though any Kokufu bonsai might work to lead with, there’s something about Quince flowers… Here’s Bill Valavanis’ caption: A small size Toyo Nishiki Japanese flowering quince, Chaenomeles speciosa ‘Toyo Nishiki’ with multiple colored flowers. Although red, pink and white blossoms are common for this great cultivar, I’ve often seen red branches grafted onto specimens to improve color distribution. Welcome to 2017. Even though it’s a day of rest, alligators don’t really rest (nasty year end alligators today and then inventory tomorrow), so I’ve decided to take the easy way out and show you some photos that we featured in February … Continue reading Nasty Alligators & Old New Year’s Bonsai

Two Simple Tricks With Bonsai Wire

Japanese white pine from our 2017 Bonsai Calendar (Sorry, sold out). This tree has no doubt been repeatedly wired over years of development. The photo above is from the October page of our 2017 Bonsai Calendar. The rest of this post is from March 2010. Two dates separated by more than eight years. But the advice is timeless. Yesterday several thousand pounds of Bonsai Wire arrived and now we’ve got Kilo Rolls coming out of our ears Our Solution? Lower Kilo Wire Prices Now Only 14.80 (or 13.90) with our 20% to 25% off Site Wide Sale Too long … Continue reading Two Simple Tricks With Bonsai Wire

Bonsai & Penjing, Ambassadors of Peace & Beauty

This brand new book tells the awe-inspiring stories of bonsai and penjing trees in the collection of the National Arboretum in Washington D.C. A must for any red-blooded American bonsai lover and really, any bonsai lover anywhere. We are delighted to offer a beautiful new bonsai book for all of you who love our wonderful U.S. National Bonsai & Penjing collections (even if you don’t know it yet). It’s the next best thing to being there and as a bonus you get the awe inspiring stories of the trees, with some international diplomacy thrown in for good measure. A spread … Continue reading Bonsai & Penjing, Ambassadors of Peace & Beauty

Moon Pine & a Masterful Moment

I like everything about this Japanese white pine and its Moon pot. Except maybe the clutter on the left, the color was enhanced a bit too much, no variety is given and there’s no attribution. Still, it’s a beautiful bonsai that I’m happy to share. As the whole world migrates to social media, so goes bonsai. People and groups that used to have websites and blogs now appear only on facebook. Which is where I found the photos shown here and where we get about half the material for this blog (which also appears on facebook, of course). In this … Continue reading Moon Pine & a Masterful Moment